Analyze your heart out!

If you're not satisfied with gold stars or tagline reviews, then this is your one-stop waypoint for intellectual reparations. Join our weekly track-by-track adventures! No genre avoided... no point unconsidered. If your heart's in the music, then give it your all.

Crash Chords... where music is life, and life is good.

Every album a contender. Every song a debate.

Each week we embark down a different road. No two albums are alike, and so neither are their discussions.

So go ahead. Review our reviews!

The Crash Chords Podcast (CCP)

The Crash Chords Podcast, our primary podcast and pillar series, is an eternal war for artistic scrutiny. Follow along with our intensive album analyses by diving into the album yourself first — using our Spotify play buttons, when available — and then join us in asking the hard questions. Expect guest panelists, broader topics concerning music as an art form, episode specials, and surprise performances.

Crash Chords: Autographs (CCA)

Hosted by Matt Storm, this series takes the “analysis” portion of our primary podcast (CCP) and aims it squarely at the guests, i.e. an “artist’s analysis”. No, this isn’t therapy, it’s a loose and informal interview format that releases guests from the constraints of self-promotion or a dedicated album, and opens the door to… anything their heart desires.

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CRASH CHORDS is a website devoted to expanding how we think about music as an art form.

Our goal is to foster an atmosphere of subjective debate in which the relevance of a single note can be argued beside an entire repertoire’s sphere of influence. In our site’s content, we try to delve into as diverse a selection of music as possible; we explore the intricacies of composition, the circumstances surrounding a musical work’s place in our time, and the broad, ineffable questions that concern how art touches us emotionally.

Aside from music's humble role as the commuter’s soundtrack, or the partygoer’s mood-setter, it also shapes the way we think, act, and react to the world around us. We connect with the familiar, and we’re challenged by the unknown. So, as newer styles of music are brought down to us, it’s only natural to be a little open-minded and a little suspicious at the same time. We may also question whether these new styles will stand the test of time—or whether they’re destined for the dustpan. Often there are unseen factors that steer our most cherished works to and from the public eye, everything from a lucky break to the pervading cultural zeitgeist or groupthink. Well, here at Crash Chords, we take nothing for granted. While the threat of cultural homogeneity is always looming, our ideal environment is one where the tug-of-war for artistic scrutiny remains spirited and eternal.

Funneled through the gates of Footwork and IDM are the sounds of Black Origami, a confluence of rhythmic theses, footnotes, and diatribes produced by composer/DJ Jerrilynn Patton (Jlin). Though only her second album, Black Origami is born of a collaboration with Indian dance & movement artist Avril Stormy Unger, and of a kind of artistic freedom she has long been seeking. Let’s explore the album together and then return to a fond old subject: objectifying the subjective—or vice-a-versa!

Where were you in September 2012? We were fumbling through the Flobots’ last album, The Circle in the Square. And now, after many moons, we’re tackling them again, hopefully with steadier hands and heads. Jonny 5, Brer Rabbit, KennyO, and company are back at it, releasing their first album in that timespan, Noenemies. We’ll discuss the current state of Flobots, the new album and its content, while touching briefly on “having your back against the wall” so to speak—confronting the ‘thens’ and ‘nows’ of critical consideration.

This week, Matt welcomes Bunny Buxom, a burlesque producer, performer, singer, and activist hailing from Queens, NY. Producer of many shows in the NYC area including Talons and Tease, Resistance, and Rabbit Hole Presents, Bunny chats about her earliest memories involving the pursuit of burlesque and her transition into making it a full-time career. She describes the origins of Rabbit Hole Productions and explains how important it was for her to create a space that promoted feminism, body positivity, and equality. She also chats about how she got involved with The Pink Room Burlesque and her upcoming wrestling-inspired show on July 7th, called TasselMania. And so, from those stories to the special tale of what it’s like being upstaged by her sphinx cat Rodger, here’s presenting Matt Storm and Bunny Buxom.

Make way for K.Flay, the indie pop & rap artist whose introspective approach to songwriting and blend of singing styles warrant some proper dissection. Tackling her most recent LP, Every Where Is Some Where, we invite you to join us as we inspect the highlights and mull over a variety of details. With plenty of praise and plenty of debate, where do you stand in the track-by-track? Also stick around for a discussion on the fine line between comfort and propaganda.

Today, Matt welcomes Viktor Devonne, burlesque producer and performer hailing from Jersey City. Producer of White Elephant Burlesque, held at Rockbar NYC every Wednesday at 8:30pm, Viktor chats about his roots in burlesque having been born of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. With Matt, he discusses the origins of White Elephant Burlesque, what it’s like to run a weekly show, and what goes into making that a success. He also explains how he produces his performances, where he draws inspiration, and how that affects his craft. And so, from an update on the burlesque scene to how it’s changing and evolving, here’s presenting Matt Storm and Viktor Devonne.

It’s time for everyone’s favorite (and perhaps only) virtual band! Although we’ve inspected the work of Damon Albarn before, this is our first chance to take on the Gorillaz, an unrelated ensemble of animated musicians — 2-D, Mudoc, Noodle, and Russel — who, as far as we’re concerned, are behind the music we’re hearing. On their latest album, Humanz, the Gorillaz introduce a bevy of artists, both old and new, to help with the project and take on its variety of subjects. Let’s follow along! And save room for a brief discussion on the subjectivity and flexibility of rating criteria where art is concerned.

Today we’re surveying the front lines of musical sensibilities. Avant garde singer, pianist, composer, and painter Diamanda Galás isn’t your everyday rom-com soprano. With a voice that’s been known to induce fear in a single note, bolstered by a three-and-a-half octave range, Diamanda’s followers range from fringe jazz cats to left field metalheads. Let’s let the work speak for itself; in this case, the work consists of peculiar re-workings of traditional jazz tunes… with a couple of surprises as well. The album is called All the Way, borrowed from its titular track, a cover of the familiar Frank Sinatra tune. Follow the originals with the provided playlist! We’ll explain them as we go. Also stick around for a discussion on the necessity of surveying all sides of the spectrum—good/bad, ugly/beautiful, moral/immoral—for only then do we have sufficient context for passing judgement.

Today, Matt welcomes burlesque producer and performer extraordinaire Fancy Feast, hailing from Brooklyn, NY. Creator of the Coney Island show “Maim That Tune” and co-producer of the Fuck You Revue, Fancy Feast discusses her origins in burlesque and how her craft has evolved over the years. She also chats about some unconventional performances, how performing is sometimes just for the performer, and also what it’s like to cultivate an audience. And so, from and her day job at Babeland to her life as a sex educator, here’s presenting Matt Storm and Fancy Feast.

Let’s traverse the cosmos to check in on our oft-mentioned composer of all things ‘space’, the one and only Vangelis. Although marrying electronic music to space-oriented themes is fairly intuitive, Vangelis, who cornered the market on it, also happens to have a penchant for paying homage to specific space missions. This time around, that homage is Rosetta, the musical play-by-play of the eponymous ESA probe’s voyage to Churyumov–Gerasimenko [comet 67P]. From the origins of the comet to Rosetta’s decade-long journey, to its dramatic end-of-mission impact—and let’s not forget about our brave little lander Philae—Vangelis has more than enough fodder for some juicy composition, as do we for some juicy discussion! Oh and our topic, you ask? Totally unrelated… SPACE.

At the behest of listener (and former guest Devin Jackson Mullen of Anxious Kids Make Good People), today we’re taking on Drunk, the latest project by Thundercat, the stage name of grammy-award winning bassist Stephen Bruner. Composed by Bruner, but with the help of long-time collaborator Flying Lotus and a myriad of guest artists, Drunk is a 23-track wormhole that explores the inventive and demented mind of the talented bassist — under any and all of life’s circumstances. Let’s explore the album together before broadcasting a monster monologue [@2:19:21 – @2:40:24] covering the ethics of criticism, a response to an artist, and some changes to the format of the series.